MUSIC PLAYS ON IN AMERICA

New Zealand Listener, Volume 7, Issue 173, 16 October 1942, Page 10

MUSIC PLAYS ON IN AMERICA

" (Special to

The Listener

from

the War Services Board, Washington)

. T EITHER serious nor popular music in America is reduced or restrained by the war. When, all within one month, New York City hears the Western Hemisphere premiére of Shostakovich’s new Seventh Symphony and sees the Broadway opening of Irving Berlin’s super-show, This is the Army, no one need fear for the future of either popular dance music or the classics. Amid the blasts of factory whistles and the clank of tank-treads, great music is still being played in America. Musicians, of course, can be patriots, too-and in the United States the com‘posers, . conductors, singers, and instruof international fame are adding their talents and their reputations to patriotism’s tremendous symphony. Brave, ringing songs are being whistled on street corners and in army camps. Not as many marching songs as the last war produced, for this is not a marching war. But all American musicians are taking part, Dmitri Shostakovich is probably the best known young symphonic com-

poser in the world. it is only hitting therefore, that this young Russian’s latest major work should be introduced to the Americas by a conductor no less renowned than Arturo Toscanini leading the National Broadcasting Company’s Orchestra. This Seventh Symphony of Shostakovich is no ordinary work, even by an extraordinary composer. He wrote it in the very midst of the Nazi attack on Leningrad. The composer himself has described its fundamental theme as "devoted to the ordinary Soviet citizens who have become heroes of this patriotic struggle." Composer for Two Wars On the "popular" side of the musical ledger, Irving Berlin’s show is just as much a’ sensation. The little U.S. Infantry ex-sergeant, who wrote and produced the famous army show of the last war, Yip, Yip, Yaphank, has been contributing many of the most beloved tunes of this war, these past few months: "God Bless America", for instance, and "Any Bonds To-day?"-and genuinely contributing them, too, since all of his royalties have gone to the U.S. armed services, the Red Cross, and _ similar organisations.

Here in This is the Army, is his lifetime’s major opus-a vast, vim-driven, breakneck-speedy, beautiful extravaganza, produced strictly of, for, and by the U.S. Army. . All of its staggering profits are destined to go to the Army Emergency Relief. Everyone who takes part in it-even the swooningly handsome leading "ladies’-is either a private, a corporal, or a sergeant. And almost everyone was an actor, singer, dancer of considerable repute before he put on the Army uniform. The contribution of Mr. Berlin, composer, as distinguished from Mr. Berlin, producer, is a glad and glorious one. There is the song which gives the whole show its name, "This is the Army". There is a sentimental, eminently singable tune called "I Left My Heart at the Stage Door Canteen". There is a revival, introducing Mr. Berlin in person, of his ancient favourite, "Oh, How I Hate to Get Up in the Morning", Other War Songs Among other well-known popular composers who have contributed to the gaiety of the United Nations there is (Continued on next page)

MUSIC IN AMERICA (Continued from previous page) the august team of Jerome Kern and Oscar Hammerstein, creators in the past of the immortal "Old Man River’, who have just turned out their second war song of the year. Also, an equally wellliked team, Rodgers and Hart, have done a recruiting song especially at the Government’s. request: the Bombardier’s song. This branch of the Air-Forces, suffering from a certain anonymity in the shadow of the pilots, needed extra boosting. Now it has it-in waltz time. All over the country, the United Service Organisations have been sponsoring concerts in army camps and naval stations, presenting many of the world’s best known soloists, orchestras, dance bands. All over the country, too, stars of musical comedy and radio have been entertaining the night and day shifts of war’s factory workers, Jascha Heifetz, for instance, who, according to his own figures, has played a violin for over 70,000 hours during his life, has been giving one recital after another under United Service Organisation auspices, crowding every seat and standing room at the Army camp theatres. Another famous violinist, Albert Spalding, has been doing the same-and, in addition to his solo ap-

Pearances, has appeared at Fort Monmouth and other encampments in the concert company of Lucille Manners, well known soprano, and Conrad Thibault, baritone. Long List of Performers Nino Martini, leading Metropolitan Opera tenor, has also volunteered for service to the United Servicé Organisation concert division, and is off on a camp tour which started at a far Northwestern air base. The list of top-flight performers who share their talents with the fighting men of America, is long. Such well-known musicians as Mischa Elman and Yehudi Menuhin, violinists; Karin Branzell, Dusolina Gianinni, Dorothy Maynor, James Melton, Nelson Eddy, singers; Alec Templeton and several other popular pianists. More than 100 of the swing and dance bands-and all the most famous-have been playing at American army camps. Paul Whiteman’s band, for instance, and Benny Goodman’s, Vincent Lopez’s, Kay Kyser’s, Raymond Scott’s, Woody Herman’s, and Sammy Kayo’s. Among the hardest working of all the musicians contributing talent to the U.S. war effort is the French conductor, André Kostelanetz. He recently appeared in the great Navy Relief Show, and has been in constant charge of the musical portion of the radio programme, This is War. Another important radio — conductor, Howard Barlow, has contributed his services in several series of programmes dedicated to better cultural re-lations-the British-American Festival, for example. Lately, too, in a series of Sunday programmes over the Columbia Broadcasting System, Mr. Barlow conducted the "Music of Free Nations", beginning with Free France, and continuing with Free Holland, Russia, Czechoslovakia. All over America, music is certainly helping to win the war.